There has been a sudden rush to flip off tradition, throw out wisdom and enact the popular for the sake of the expedient. Every political and societal decision is suddenly an urgent dash and call for resolution without letting things simmer and filter through the process, allowing cooler heads to think and process and reason.

It’s like we have culturally adopted the mantra, “You Only Live Once.”

Ignore the Consequences

If you are below 30, you understand it. If you are in my generation, let me school you– YOLO stands for “You Only Live Once.” It’s a term used before drink or drug, or just before the clothes are dropped to the ground, or an item slipped into a purse before the checkout.

Ignore the consequence. You Only Live Once. Live for the moment.

In my state, there are more “medical marijuana” clinics than Starbucks. 20-year old-young men pour through these doors holding their backs or their chronic knees,  perfect candidates for a prescription. And now, possession under an ounce is legal. “ Do what you need to do to feel good.”

Mark my words, it’s coming to your state, to your town. Do we really know the impact on our bodies, society, schools, or children?

And as thousands of years of tradition crumble, society’s most sacred union has been altered beyond recognition. Rather than create a separate legal status, five robed rulers decided to take over our sacred ceremony, our faith tradition and change it to fit an entirely new definition. Make your own rules.

This is the age where constraint is thrown to the wind and freedom reigns over consequence.

There’s a certain air of catch-me-if-you can happening right now. This sea-tide of nose thumbing at God is like a little boy who crosses the line, figures out he’s not caught, so he does a little dance in rebellious freedom.  I’ve danced that dance. And the exhilaration never lasts.

There was a movie last summer called The Purge. The premise was that one day a year, there were no rules and no law. Anarchy reigned, as vengeance and mayhem were unleashed. I didn’t see the movie, as it hit a little too close to home.

Much of this is driven by the YOLO philosophy.

Since when is happiness the ultimate goal? “As long as they are happy” or “in love” or “aren’t hurting anyone.” There is a price to be paid – and how awful when it’s the innocent who have to pay it for the worship of YOLO. A baby. A bystander. A spouse.

George the Poet takes on YOLO in this video. His well-constructed logic struck me. He says  YOLO can be about you, or it can be about others. “If I use YOLO to sin, why can’t I use it to help others win?”

He flips the logic. Instead of living for the moment to justify every selfish endeavor, why not use that same spirit to influence the world?

Why not take a chance – speak up for truth – and by doing so, you might just make a change.